Iron with illuminating device



Jan. 27, 1942. B. B, HARDING IgM-71ml IRON WITH ILLUMILTINGl DEVICE Filed June 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet l Silo'. WMA

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, IRON VWITH ILLUMINATING DEVICE Filed June 14, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 mig), 4 V ""llmmllll.'

glu/ucm TOL ZM 79K Patented Jan. y2x7,` 19.472

mon wrrn ILLUMINATING mzvlclafy -f A Brooks B. naming, Freeport, N. Y. i Application June 14, 193s, 'serial No'. 213,663 (crew-'2i s claims.

This' .inventionirelates to sad irons and has particular reference to an arrangement'for illuminating the work to be pressed in a zone adjacent the nose end of the iron. E. l It has heretofore been proposed to attach elecy vtric lamps toil-ons vfor the purpose of casting a relatively intense-.beam of light on thework being pressed. In many instances such devices are objectionable in that they are designed to be at-` .tachedg to the handle or some other portion of the iron where they either interfere with the hand of `the operator, and/or partially obstruct the vision of the operator. Furthermore, various prior v devices knownto me have the further disadvantage that they produce anl objectionable glarev on the vwork which is tiring to the eyes of the operator, and which instead of showing up wrinklesso direct illumination onthe work as to cause such-.wrinkles to escape notice.

It is one of the main objects of the present invention to provide a suitable illuminating arrangement for irons which will avoid diiculties such as those mentioned. v l

It is a .further object of the invention to provide a lighting arrangement for irons which will serve to elicientlyv illuminate the work in an crea adjacent the nose of the iron, and Whose elllciency results from its location on the iron body The proand the direction of the Ibeam cast. posed arrangement is such that an intense beam of light is not required,- and as a matter of fact it is a further feature of .the invention to provide means for cutting down'the intensity of illumination since my experiments have shown that eilicient results can be obtained with light of re1- atively low intensity. The lower the lightv intensity consistent with efcient results the less .will be the glare which tends to tire the eyes of the operator. The means referred to for cutting ,down the intensity-of illumination is particularly` intended to be used when White material VisA being ironedfsince the glare therefrom isparticularly` bad. According to the invention the arrangement is such that when ironing colored ma.

terials thev intensity of illumination may be in tentionally increased, since colored lmaterials partially absorb the light and do not produce nearly as great a glare.v y

' I It is a furtherspecic feature of the inventionide a lightin arrangement for irons higiliowill be located elatively near the bottom oi the iron so as to cast a light beam in a direction as nearly parallel as possible to the surface ofthe material being pressed. It is a still further struction; r

nating means in connectionl with 'an iron that such means will in no way interfere withthe hand or line of vision of the'o'perat'or.

The above and "other objectsl and vadvantages of theinventionfwill be readily understood from the several illustrative embodimentsillustrated in the accompanying drawings. Y.

In such drawings: f g 'l 1 l Fig. 1` is a longitudinal elevation of an iron embodying the `present invention,l certain parts being broken away toi show points ofinterior con- Fig. 2 is a top'view ofjthe construction shown in Fig. 1, andwhereinvthe-`arlangement ofthe illuminating m'eansis clearly shown:

Fig.- 3 is'afront end 'view of the same *iron showing the arrangement ofthe nose, and indicating certain of the interior parts in broken lines;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sideview of the noseY of vthe iron taken at right angles vto Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 isa perspective the invention; v

Fig. 6 is a longitudinalsection'of the nose end oi' an iron involving a modication ofthe emview of one element of bodimentlllustrated in Figs. v1-i;

Fig. 7 is a front-end view showing the nose of the iron of the embodiment of Fig. 6; and.

" Fig. 8 is a fragmentary plan view ofV the nose prises a base'member Il, in which may 'be em` bedded or on whichmay be disposed an' electrical resistance heating unit A(not shown), a top shell or casing I 2, and a handle arrangement comprising a metal irame'l3 securedto' the top of the shell and supporting a handle 14. Anelectric switch plug I5 in thelform ofiron illustrated is detachably supported on a Abracketatthe rear o! the handle andr servestocontrol the-flow of current through an. electricV cable from a wall plug to the electic'heating unit. t 1 I 'I'he top shell is hollow, and interiorally thereof may be located a weight plate I6 which may beanchored .by suitablemeans to `the top 'surface Y n of the base member u.. Arest is: 1n' the lform of Ia metal bracketY maybe"mountedv at theV rear will Ibe mountedl at thenosefend I0 of the iron in relatively close proximityto'the ndersuriace object of the invention to so arrange an illumi- I9 of the base member, andslightly rearwardly 2 of the front end extremity 2l thereof. To this end the nose portion is provided with an intedisposed an electric lamp socket 22 in which will be inserted a relativelyy small sized electric lamp 2l. 'Ilfie socket 22 is mounted on the upper side I I of the base member I I and the same may be secured in a vertically recessed portion 2l in the front portion of the weight plate It. Obviously, however, the lamp member may be secured in a similar position through some other fastening arrangement. The front end of the top shell I2 adjacent its point of meeting with the upper surface I'I of the base member II is cut away as shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 4 to provide an opening 25. Such opening will preferably extend rearwardly to a line passing through or slightly back of the lamp 23 as will be understood from Figs. l and 4'. Such opening need not be and preferably is not very deep vertically. In the form shown it will be noted that it is not quite as high as the upper side of the lamp bulb.

It is optional whether the lamp bulb be connected in parallel with the heating unit and controlled by the light switch I5, or whether the same be provided with a separate control switch. In the present instance a separate switch plug 2t is provided, the same being supported on the rest I8 and connected to a cable 21 to the lamp socket through suitable terminals which, for purposes of clarity, have been omitted from the drawing. If desired the cable above the switch plug 28 may be spliced to the cable above the switch plug I so that a single wall socket may be used.

It will be observed that the arrangement is such that the illuminating means is housed entirely within the body of the iron with the result that it is not in the way, and being housed within the top shell I2 no special shade is required as is usually the case with prior devices. Because of the fact that the lamp 23 is located in close proximity to the ironing surface I9 of the base member, the beam of light cast thereby as di,

agrammatically represented in Fig. 4 will be in a 'generally forward direction more or less parallel with the material to be pressed. This will minimize glare from the surface of the material and thus cut down eye strain. The arrangement is radically different from prior constructions wherein the light is not only mounted exteriorly of the iron but positioned relatively high above the base of the iron so that, to illuminate an area around the nose of the iron, it is necessary that ythe light be directed downwardly, or at least at a substantial angle to the surface of the material.

A further important benefit of the arrangement whereby the light beam is directed primarily in a forward direction as distinguished from a vertical direction is that any wrinkles in the work are caused to cast a definite shadow. I have definitely proved by my experiments that wrinkles or other unevennessos in the surface of the material being pressed will cast shadows and be readily apparent to the operator, whereas the light is mounted substantially above the surface of the material and directed downwardly thereon such defects may entirely escape notice.

Since, for the reasons just explained, the light operates effectively primarily by reason of the direction of the light beam, the intensity of illumination is of secondary importance, and I have found that in some cases, particularly where white material is beingironed the normal intensity of illumination of the lamp 22 can be diminished with a view of minimizing undesired glare. To this end I provide a shield 2l, preferably of somewhat flexible material, which fits in the opening 25 at the nose of the top shell. Such shield is preferably made of mica, or some other heat-resistant material. Mica is also desirable in that it is not entirely transparent. Being translucent it permits the passage of light from the lamp 22, but cuts down the intensity thereof.

As shown 'in Fig. 5 the mica shield 28 may be provided at its rear with a supporting frame 2l which clips along the rear edge thereof, and which holds the shield in a shape generally conforming to the contour of the nose end of the top shell I2. As best shown in Fig. 1 a longitudinal slot 30 may be provided in the top shell I2 adapted to receive a handle or button 2l secured to member 29. Through such arrangement the shield 25 may be raised so that a direct beam of light will be projected unimpaired through the nose opening 25. Again, the shield may be lowered to the position shown in the various figures so that the light beam from the lamp passes therethrough. To prevent light from escaping through slot 25, the shield frame 29 may be provided with a pair of longitudinal wings 22 and 32 which respectively will close the slot Il when the shield is in its lowered and raised positions.

I have found it unnecessary to provide a special fastening means for the shield 28. The same can conveniently be caused to ride upwardly and downwardly against the inner wall of the shell and/or against the rounded bulb surface of the lamp 2l. In the arrangement here shown the surface of the bulb is located relatively close to the wall of the shell and these two parts coact to frictionally engage the shield and hold the same in any adjusted position.

It will be understood that the means for varying the intensity of illumination which here comprises the shell 28 may be omitted without sacrificing the primary benefits of the invention.

In the embodiment Just described it has been pointed out that the lamp is located rearwardly of the front extremity 20 of the base member II. While the baseV member in the iron shown is relatively thin, and is beveled at its edges, as will be apparent from Figs. 2 and 3, the thickness thereof taken in connection with the position of the light is such that some shadow will be cast in a narrow zone immediately adjacent the edges of the base member. I have found from experience that this is not objectionable since the operator will concentrate her vision on the material at a point removed from and forwardly of the nose of the iron. As a matter of fact it may be quite desirable to avoid intense illumination immediately around the point. I have, therefore, intentionally arranged the lamp so that an obstruction, in the present case the forward portion of the base member itself, will interrupt part of the light beam from the lamp which would otherwiseimpinge on the surface of the material being ironed immediately in front of the extremity of the base. A shadow will be cast by the obstruction depending in part on the position of the lamp, say for over an area along the side edges and adjacent the point from one-half to one inch in width. It will be understood that tion to the light beam in the point area, since obviously other means may be employed to interrupt a portion of the light beam and a shadow around the point.

The shadow can be eliminated if desired without bringing the lamp so forwardly as to require a construction which wouldv interfere with the line of vision by modifying the nose portion of the iron in such manner that the beam of light will impinge on the 'material in the area. immediately adjacent the point and side edges of the iron bas'e. One such modified varrangement is illustrated in Figs.6 through 8. In such construction the position and arrangement of socket 22 and lamp 23 is the same as before. The iron base member il, however, has a modified nose portion, the same being cut away on a longitudinal medial line from a point slightly back of lamp 23 to provide a forwardly and downwardly inclining surface 34.' The surface 3l will incline towardsthe sides as well as towards the front extremity 35 as will be understood from Figs. '7 and 8 so that the beam of light cast by the lamp will impinge on the material being ironed in the immediate area of the edges of the base around produce member,l an opening through the front end of the shell in the lower portion thereof near the `bottom ironing surface of the ,base member, and an electricvlamp socket housed 'within the top shell behind said front opening adapted to support an electric lampy in generally horizontal alignment with said opening forsubstantially horizontal illumination of the material to be pressed.

4. An iron comprising a base member and a hollow top shell fitted on thetop of the base member and meeting the base member along a line relatively near the bottom ironing surface of the base member, a lamp socket housed within the top shell, and a light projecting opening in the forward end of the iron located adjacent the meeting line of the base member and top shell said opening being positioned to' project a beam from a lamp received in said socket forwardly of the iron in a substantially horizontall direction .along the material being pressed.

the no'se portion. The base may be cut away in some other suitable manner, but of course care should be taken not to reduce the mass of the material to the point where it will not hold suilicient heat. Since the nose portion of the iron is the most important area thereof in any pressing operation it should notJ be allowed to be cooler than other areas. f

It will be understood. that the invention is capable of some range of modification and equivalency 4without departing from the essential features thereof which distinguish the same from prior iron light arrangements: rIhe embodiments shown are therefore to be taken as merely illustrative and the scope of the invention determined from the appended claims.

I claim: 1

1.' An electric iron comprising a main body portion formed with a pointed nose at its forward end, a chamber within the iron body portion, a lamp in said ohamber,jand an opening through the front end of the nose in the lower` portion thereof through which rays of the lamp are projected said opening being positioned to project a beam from said lamp forwardly of the iron body in a substantially horizontal direction along the material being pressed.

2. An iron comprising amain body `portion having a nose at its forward end, and an electric lamp housed within the nose o f the body portion in proximity to the bottom of the iron, and a horizontally slottedA opening in the nose provid- ,ing for projection of illumination from the lamp said opening being positioned to project a beam from said lamp in a substantially horizontal direction along the material being pressed.

3. An iron comprising a base member and a top shell securedonthe upper sideofthebase mi4` 5. An 'iron comprising a main body portion formed with a nose at its forward end, a chamber in said nose, an electric lamp in said chamber,

a light projecting opening in the forward end of the nose relatively close to thev bottom ironing surface said opening being positioned to project abeam from said lamp forwardly of the iron body in a substantially horizontal direction along the material being pressed, andmeans for varying the intensity of light from the lamp projected through said opening. f

6A An iron comprising a base member termil nating in a pointed forward end, and a top shell secured to the base member, a lamp mounted in the nose ofthe iron within theV top shell, said forward end portion ofthe base member having a downwardly inclining surface in spaced relation to' the top shell providing an aperture for projection of illumination from the lamp in an area immediately adjacent the edges of the base member. j

7. An electric iron coxprising a main body portion formed with a pointed nose at its forward end, a.V chamber within the yirim bodv portion, a .lamp in said chamber, andan opening through the front end of the nose relativelyclose to the bottom ironing surface through which rays of Y the lamp are projected, said opening being positioned to project a beam from said lamp forwardly vof the iron in a substantially horizontal direction aiong the motel-iai being pressed.

nose portion ending in a pointed tip and having y 8. An iron comprising a body having-a forward a bottom ironing surface, a lamp carried by the iron at substantially the longitudinal center line of the iron rearwardly of the tip so as not to interfere with observation of the material to be pressed adjacent the tip, said lamp being mounted in close proximity to the bottom ironing surface 'below the top level 0f the b'ody to throw a light beam forwardly in a substantially horizontal direction along and adjacent the material to be pressed. V

. Baooxs n. manine. 

